A Curse in the Sand
by Tigeresssa
Summary: Can a sea-faring theif and a cruel hearted Prince join to release the desert cities of Aviarab and Zordor from a terrible curse? My first Fanfic...please read :
1. Chapter 1: Leviathan

A/N: This is my first original fan fiction so please be nice! :) Also this chapter is sort of like a prologue but it's more of an intro to some of the characters..

ENJOY :)

A fashionable young lady walked alongside the port. Her body guard walking alongside her, making sure she wasn't attacked. A shadow in an alley caught the girl's attention. She nudged her body guard discretely and indicated towards the alley. Her body guard nodded and they continued slowly.

The port was completely normal to all other ports. Bustling with a mix of peasants, beggars, nobles, drunkards and on occasion; pirates. One of these groups of pirates or raiders came almost every year. It was around this time of year that the group were supposed to attack. The Leviathans. The lady noticed a feeling of tension in the air. It was almost time. A loud horn blared. All the people started screaming and running. The lady smiled. Small groups of armed people chased villagers, broke into houses and were taking livestock and furniture from the people's houses. The Leviathans had finally arrived. T

he lady ran towards the governor's house. The door was locked. She looked at her body guard in a pleading way. He sighed and rammed the door open. The governor, a cowardly, twerp of a man, had barricaded himself and nearly twenty guards in his room. The lady quickly ran upstairs to where the governor was hiding. Taking off her heels, she breathed in deeply. She and her bodyguard both rammed into the door. The door gave a slight groan but didn't budge. They rammed it again, this time they could hear the door beginning to give way. With one final push, the door flung open. T

he governor's guards were taken by surprise by the young noble standing in the doorway. They wondered if they should shoot. Taking the opportunity, the lady and her body guard both drew out long swords. Together they managed to knock out all the guards without having to draw too much blood. Death was not what they wanted. The lady and her body guard began searching for the governor. It was not long before they found him cowering underneath his bed. The lady's body guard held the sword against the governor's throat.

"Sorry for the intrusion governor," said the lady casually.

"What do you want?" whimpered the governor.

"To take your money and as many of your possessions with as little difficulty as possible," she said smiling.

The governor thought about it for a few seconds before giving in. "Alright! My money is in a compartment behind the mirror, and the most valuable objects I own are in the living room! Just don't hurt me!"

The lady quickly ran outside the front of the governor's house and whistled loudly. A group of Leviathans ran towards the lady.

"The governor's being held upstairs. Take anything you can from the living room. That's the most valuable loot!" she told them before drawing out another sword and guarded the front entrance. Twice a guard tried to pass her but she swung both her swords at them, giving them warning cuts on their arms. Nothing too serious but enough to make them realise that it was impossible to enter the governor's house. Soon a larger group of men armed with weapons from swords and guns to pitchforks and sticks came towards the lady standing at the doorway.

"A little help would be nice!" she called out to the Leviathans in the governor's house. Soon a tall grey haired man appeared at her side. She smiled.

"Thank you!"

Quickly they began knocking out the attackers with as much speed as possible. The lady mistook the Leviathan for a villager for a moment and accidentally scratched his head. She shouted her apologies while knocking out yet another villager.

"No worries my dear!" he called back. After the last villager was on the ground, the Leviathans came out of the house, carrying gold chairs and other precious furniture. The lady's body guard came out as well, carrying a large sack of what looked like coins. With the help of the lady and her body guard, protecting the group of Leviathans, they managed to get all the furniture on board their ship, _The Lance_. Another horn blared, signalling the Leviathans to come back.

Once all the Leviathans were back on board, they pushed the gang plank off the boat and set sail before any of the villagers could attack them. A well dressed man came out from below the deck.

"Well done men!" he praised the Leviathans. They all cheered and began admiring their loot. The well dressed man walked over to the lady and hugged her. "I'm glad you are safe," he told her.

"I'm glad you are safe as well, father."

The Leviathans continued sailing for a few months, stopping only when necessary. The lady sat on a stool and looked out to sea.

"Pensive aren't we today Nadielle?" called out a Leviathan. She turned to see the Leviathan who had pretended to be her body guard.

"Hello Elexos," she greeted warmly. "I was just thinking."

He raised an eyebrow. "About what?"

"I don't know…just thinking."

Elexos shrugged.

"Hey aren't you turning sixteen soon?" he asked Nadielle.

She blinked a few times.

"Yes," she replied.

He laughed.

"What?"

"I just can't believe you're going to be sixteen! I bet no-one would be able to tell that you are sixteen!" he laughed.

"Why?" she asked smiling.

"Because you never act like your age," he pointed out. She smiled and mock punched him.

"You never act your age either!" she said. He stuck out his tongue at her and she copied him.

"That's enough you two!" laughed a Leviathan. "Come on now! It's time to get training."


	2. Chapter 2: On Deck

Nadielle breathed in. It was another bright and sunny day aboard _The Lance_. She pulled on a plain brown dress and, hoping to avoid having her hair brushed yet again, Nadielle climbed up the mast to the look out. Some of the other crew had woken up as well. Nadielle remembered the story her handmaid, Almarta, had told her about the crew. She'd said the crew were once the villagers from a place called Danviamar. The villagers were good people and good farmers. But one day two strangers set the whole village on fire. The few survivors fled the burnt village by a large boat. Eventually money and food became so scarce, they took to robbing the villages they came across. They soon gave themselves a name, 'The Leviathans'. The Leviathans continued to rob villages of their food and money, even when they already had plenty of it. They gladly welcomed any man or woman who wished to join them as long as they pledged their fealty to The Leviathans' leader, Lord Routa. Nadielle was the youngest member of The Leviathans and Lord Routa's adopted child. Nadielle was told she'd been found abandoned in a village in the North and Lord Routa had promised to raise her as his own. She'd been a Leviathan all her life.

Today in particular was special to Nadielle. Not just because it was her sixteenth birthday, Leviathans didn't really pay attention to birthdays, but because the Leviathans were going to land on a new shore, one they'd never set foot from. But this was more exciting to Nadielle because she'd been told years ago, by an old fortune teller that she would find a great fortune on her own in this particular land. A land of sand and heat. Nadielle had had four years to brood on this promise of a large fortune for herself. Someone called up to her, snapping Nadielle out of her reverie.

"Nadielle! Why have you not yet brushed your hair? The salty air will knot your hair all over again!" shouted Almarta, Nadielle's handmaid.

"Sorry Almarta! But the sun was too beautiful! It was too tempting to resist! Brushing my hair did not even cross my mind!" shouted back Nadielle.

"Oh, don't even bother lying ter me Nadi! Still thinking about that nonsense wot that crazy old woman says to you? I do not think your father would want you to be thinking about riches that do not exist!"

"He is my adopted father Almarta! I am grateful for his care when I was an infant but I am sixteen and can take care of myself! My real parents could still be alive elsewhere! Imagine what they could've been like? They could have been peasants, merchants, nobles or maybe royalty!"

"Don't be silly, Nadielle! If they were any decent sort like nobles or royalty, they'd have sent you to an orphanage! Not abandon you in a rotting village without any hope of survival! Now stop filling your head with absurd thoughts and git your head outta those clouds!"

"Alright Almarta!" called Nadielle. She began to climb down the rope ladder.

Nadielle sat obediently on a barrel of mead as Almarta went to get her ivory comb. As Almarta began untangling Nadielle's black curls, the rest of the crew started to wake up and start their daily routines. All the new recruits still growing accustomed to their new life on the sea. Toru, the ships weapons master came up from the brig. Toru was the one who had helped Nadielle on their last raid.

"Ey Nadi! Scabbard still sharp?" he asked. Almarta had just finished with Nadielle's hair and had gone off to breakfast.

"I sharpened it this morning Toru!" lied Nadielle.

"So are you still going to refuse a second blade?"

"Yes."

"You were so talented with a second blade!"

"No Toru, I prefer a single scabbard! Remember last time I tried to use two blades at once? I nearly cut half your face off!"

"That was only because you didn't have enough practice! But you ended up bringing more than half of the total loot!"

"But she would not get enough time to practice now that we will be arriving shortly. I do not wish to put her or any of the Leviathans in danger so eagerly," laughed a deep voice. Lord Routa stood before them, wearing a rich blue coat over a cream blouse and his brown beard intricately braided.

"Well maybe next village then. Lord Routa! Do you require anything?" asked Toru.

"Not this hour, friend. I wish to speak with Nadielle for a few moments."

Nadielle followed Lord Routa to his quarters below the wheel. Lord Routa sat behind his desk and watched Nadielle sit quietly, twisting a strand of her hair as she did when thinking, her deep amber eyes distant and thoughtful.

"May I ask of you a favour Nadielle?" asked Lord Routa.

"Of course. What do you require of me?" replied Nadielle.

"Would you please be so inclined as to stay on board the ship once we have arrived at the new shore?"

"What?!" shouted Nadielle. Before Lord Routa had a chance to explain, Nadielle continued, "Stay here? But the fortune teller! The grand treasure for mine to find! You want me to stay here while the fortune is sitting out there?"

"Nadielle we have never been across to the shores of the north before. We do not know what sort of people live here. Neither do we know how skilled in combat their people may be. I do not wish to place you in potential danger until a small group of scouts and I have observed the city. You have stayed behind on many occasions. You should be able to wait a few more days to receive this treasure, can you not?"

Nadielle sat on the chair arms crossed and fuming.

"Do you promise to stay Nadielle?" asked Lord Routa.

"Yes! Yes! Fine!" grumbled Nadielle. She'd crossed her fingers behind her back. Routa relaxed as if she'd relieved him of quite a bit of stress.

"Land-ho!" cried the look-out. Nadielle burst out of the room and raced to the edge of the ship like so many other of the crew. There on the horizon lay the flat black shape of the new shore. The land she was now forbidden to touch. Routa, Toru and five scouts sat upon the grey horses. The Leviathans only rode grey horses, that was how the Leviathans knew who was an ally and who was not. Lord Routa smiled at Nadielle before they rode out to the desert.


	3. Chapter 3: Aviarab

A/N: Okay... Just so everyone knows, the story kinda jumps from place to place depending on the story. Sorry for the inconvience and I hope you don't get too confused...

Deep within the northern desert, lays the city of Aviaräb. The name of the city meant '_Castle of the Sky._' The city is most welcoming to strangers as visitors rarely came to the city. Aviaräb is ruled by the Princess Sadile, a kind and beautiful ruler, but fairly vain and stubborn as a mule.

"My lady!" called Undor, Princess Sadile's most trusted advisor. "A small group of strangers have arrived at the city's gates!"

"Quick let them in! It has been months since we had newcomers! They must be weary from their journey!" ordered Princess Sadile. The travelers were soon let in and brought to the palace. Once they were inside, Princess Sadile could see that they were all about to collapse from exhaustion.

"Someone fetch some water, quickly!" she shouted. She supported a man who wore deep blue clothing and a richly embroidered shirt. She assumed this was the leader.

"My name is Princess Sadile. You will have some fresh water brought to you and your friends shortly. But while you wait may I please ask for your name?" she asked gently.

"L-lord Rou-rou-routa," gasped the man.

"My Lady!" called Undor.

"What is it now?" the Princess shouted.

"Another stranger! He requests an audience with you!"

"A suitor?"

"He won't say Your Highness."

"Bring him forth!"

A man dressed in white burst through the palace doors astride a black stallion.

"Princess Sadile of Aviaräb, first daughter of King Bartzoul II, I am Prince Jardan of Zordor, first born of King Ramakshi," declared the newcomer.

"What business do you have in Aviaräb good highness?" Undor asked.

"As Bartzoul's first daughter, you must know of the agreement made by our ancestors?"

"What was the agreement?" asked the Princess. Jardan passed her an ancient looking piece of parchment. The Princess read the words then threw it at Jardan.

"What is this trickery?" screamed the princess.

"We are betrothed Princess! Do you defy your ancestor's will?"

"I do! I will not marry a fraud! Zordor doesn't exist! Be gone!"

"I will give you time to decide," he shouted and he galloped back out to the desert, leaving the parchment on the floor.

"Princess, that parchment is signed by King Bartzoul I, your grandfather," said one of the scholars.

"And sealed with the royal crest! No-one other than the royal family has access to those seals! For all I know this is no fraud," said another.

"I'm sure it's a fake! Search our entire records for this place, Zordor," ordered the princess.

~ * * * * * ~

"Elexos! The cloud has turned direction! It's going the other way! It mustn't be a cloud then…"

"Nadi…don't do it," Elexos groaned. But Nadielle had already grabbed her two swords and a saddled horse.

"Imagine what Routa would say!" he warned. Nadielle darted to her rooms and pulled on a white blouse and a deep blue riding tunic belonging to one of the rich ladies in Port Rule.

"He wouldn't know!" she replied, stuffing a large water bag onto the saddle. "I'm only going to follow whatever that thing is, find out what it is and come straight back. Plus I'll have a scarab on me!" Elexos remembered the two scarabs Nadielle had robbed from a wizard. The scarabs were a way of communication, one could speak into a scarab and the other would hear it.

"Fine, but don't make me lie for you!"

"You're such a great friend!" she laughed. She kicked the horse into a gallop and she rode out towards the cloud.

~ * * * * * ~

"Zordor exists!" cried a scholar.

"What?!" shouted the outraged princess. Everyone crowded around the scholar and the old book in his hands.

"I found this in the royal library! It is the journal of King Bartzoul I, it says:

_6__th__ day of the midwinter month:_

_King Ramakshi has agreed for our grandchildren to marry. This marriage should unite our kingdoms finally after six hundred years! I just hope he'll agree to his end of the bargain…that he will help Aviarab become a strong city..._"

"Read the next entry!" cried Sadile.

"_8__th__ day of the midwinter month:_

_Ramakshi has betrayed us all! He has gone mad! He intends for us to wipe out the entire Northern lands once Aviarab has united with Zordor! Ramakshi has already made allies with other cities of the south to help him defeat the north. I am going to end this before this gets out of hand…I am going to destroy Ramakshi…_"

Gasps came from all around the room. The scholar continued, "The next bit I don't understand…

_21__st__ day of the midwinter month:_

_The strangest thing has happened…Even my advisors do not know what to make of it! We were ready to attack Zordor when Princess Ardulé, Ramakshi's daughter and her son Jardan ran outside to our army. She said, "Ramakshi has gone mad! Even his eyes are red with rage! He uses magic! He has cursed Zordor! Do not enter the gates! Go home!" _

_I thought that she was just crazy until I heard Ramakshi's voice booming over the city. We all heard a loud crack before the city, the Princess and her little boy simply faded into thin air. Although I do not understand what happened entirely…I believe that Ramakshi and Zordor still exists somewhere._"

Silence filled the hall.

"Zordor no longer exists! The phony just knows his history that's all!" Sadile declared shakily.


	4. Chapter 4: Captured

"This…was...a…really…bad…idea…" Nadielle panted.

"_You think?!" _shouted Elexos over the scarab. The sun was beating down on her neck. The water had already gone in the short two hours she'd been in the desert.

"How can…I not have…gotten any closer to…the cloud? This desert…is endless!" she complained.

"_Nadi, I just realized something! After you left there have been two clouds! That means that one of those clouds must be you! It's someone on a horse! I want to see which one's you! Stop the horse!"_

"Ok…"

"_The rider in front has stopped…Nadi…"_

"Someone's following me!" She turned and saw a small dot in the distance, gradually getting closer and closer. She wheeled the horse around and broke into a gallop. Her black hair whipped wildly around her face. Looking back, she could now distinguish the horse from the rider.

"How can he ride so fast?"

A row of tall and crumbled columns began to appear in the distance. The rider was now only a few metres away. His horse black and his robes white. He lifted his hand and a green light shot out at Nadielle. She narrowly swerved out of the way. Unaware that she had stumbled into the ruins of a city, she jumped off the horse and drew one of her swords. She crouched behind a pile of rubble. Nadielle could hear hoof steps getting closer. Her heart was hammering at her chest. The horse she was riding suddenly took fright and galloped off, whinnying all the way. Watching her grey horse flee, she could hear the horseman turn and head somewhere else. Sighing in relief, she began to look around her. After a few moments wondering if she knew any knowledge of any ruins in the far country, she began wandering around.

"_Nadi! Are you okay? Both of the clouds have disappeared!_" shouted a worried Elexos.

"I'm-" Nadielle saw that she was standing on a rotting wooden platform. Nadielle could make out two hinges underneath the sand. She was standing on a trapdoor. She froze.

"Elexos."

"_What?_"

"This _was_ a bad idea…"

The trapdoor unhinged. Nadielle fell into the darkness below.

~ * * * * * ~

"Your highness, Princess Sadile. On behalf of the crew on our ship, we wish to thank-you for your hospitality, but we must set sail. Would a few extra provisions be allowed?" asked Lord Routa. They'd decided not to rob the city after their ordeal.

"Surely you don't have to leave so soon! Why doesn't your crew come to the palace as my guests?" asked Sadile. Routa imagined Nadielle and the others taking the same long journey. He swallowed.

"I'm afraid I have to decline. We must get going!"

"Pity. You are all welcome back any time."

"HE'S HERE!" shouted a page boy. "JARDAN'S BACK!"

The black horse burst through the doors.

"You have one more chance!" Jardan barked. "I know you sent someone to follow me!"

"I wouldn't ever send someone on _that_ miserable journey!" hissed Sadile.

"Do not lie! I recognize your people! Black hair, olive skin, tall. You sent a mere girl to follow me!"

All the Leviathans tensed.

"What colour horse?" croaked Routa.

"Grey," Jardan snarled. "It doesn't matter anymore! She has been taken care of." Jardan grinned menacingly.

Routa stormed outside.

"What is your decision, Princess! Betray your forefathers and have Aviaräb ripped to shreds, or live with me in Zordor?"

"Zordor disappeared many years ago! Ramakshi made sure of that! It no longer exists! You are not Prince Jardan, you are a liar and a traitor!" cried the Princess. Jardan laughed coldly.

"Shame. You have sentenced your subjects to the same fate as Zordor!" His hands glowed red and the ground shook. Wall cracked and vases broke. Cries of fear rung out in Aviaräb. Wind swirled violently around them then everything died abruptly.

"What did you do?" breathlessly asked Sadile, staggering to her feet again.

"Don't bother to try and escape!" growled Jardan. "Things will only get worse Princess if you refuse me!"He and his horse faded out into thin air. Undor looked out of the palace window.

"What do you see Undor?" cried the Princess.

"Nothing…"

~ * * * * * ~

"_Nadi? Nadi? NADI?_ _Answer me!_" Elexos' voice rang out into the darkness.

"Ow. I can't see anything," moaned Nadielle. The scarab had disappeared in the darkness, along with all her other possessions. Fumbling in the darkness, Nadielle managed to grasp her sword. Her head bumped into a wall. She felt around the wall for a door, instead she felt a flame torch. To her amazement, she still had her tinder and flint. After what felt like hours to Nadielle, she was able to light the torch. Light drove out the darkness and Nadielle was able to see. She was in an old library, mounds of dust had gathered on the shelves, an old chair and table in the corner and a door cut out of stone on the other side of the room. Nadielle still couldn't find the scarab. She picked a thick book off the shelves. It was written in a strange language. All she knew about the far country was that they used different symbols, once you decoded it, you could read it. She placed the torch in a holder and began decoding the dialect. By the time Nadielle had uncovered more than half of the dialect, she thought she'd pulled out a storybook. The book talked about an evil king that put a curse over a city and that the prince was the only one who could break the curse.

"_You found anything yet?_" asked Elexos.

Light shuffling footsteps echoed from outside the room. Nadielle huddled in the corner with the sword in her hand and the book in the other. A boy walked through the door. His eyes widened. Nadielle froze.

"Hello," said Nadielle. The boy screamed in terror. As Nadielle tried to calm him, the familiar clanking of oncoming guards was coming down the corridor. They each grabbed one of Nadielle's arms and wrenched the book and her sword out of her grasp.

"_Nadi! What's going on?_" cried a frantic Elexos.

"Get it!" shouted one of the guards. The guard picked up the scarab and put it in his pocket.

"Take her to the cells. The Prince hasn't returned as of yet," ordered the guards.

They pushed her out of the library and towards the dungeons.


	5. Chapter 5: Attack

"Are you sure there is no way to get out?" asked the Princess.

"Its endless plains as far as the eye can see. Not even a sand-dune in sight! We'd perish if we left the city," replied a scout.

"Then how are we to get water? The well was _outside_ Aviaräb!"

"We'll run out of food!"

"We can't survive!"

"QUIET!" ordered the Princess. "We have to _find_ a way to survive!"

"There is only one way, Your Highness!"

All of the council looked at Lord Routa.

"Jardan won't give your people any means of survival if you don't accept his wishes," Routa said grimly.

"Then what kind of Princess will I been seen as? A weakling? Groveling at the enemies' feet, begging for mercy?" cried the Princess.

"It's the only way!"

"No! I refuse to-" A guard ran in, interrupting the Princess.

"What else could be wrong?" asked Princess Sadile.

"A monster is attacking the city!" he shouted. Sadile ran to one of the windows. A huge, two headed, black snake-like creature, slithered through the streets, crushing buildings.

As guards attacked it, it blew balls of fire from their mouths at the city.

'_Things will only get worse Princess if you refuse me!_' Jardan's words rang in Sadile's head.

~ * * * * * ~

Nadielle sat impatiently in the dark cell. The guard on duty sat whistling a merry tune. Fire torches lit the dungeon in an eerie light. The guard was fairly old, his dark hair streaked with grey.

"You know, you still haven't asked my question," Nadielle growled.

"You haven't asked nicely," said the guard simply. Nadielle folded her arms across her chest and stared. The guard continued his merry song.

"Fine! Will you tell me why I'm locked up in this cell even though I didn't know I was trespassing until I was arrested, _please_?"

"Much better! You must remember your manners here!" smiled the guard, stroking his graying beard. Nadielle's scowl grew darker.

"Okay, okay! But I ent kidding about the manners. Well we have to wait for the Prince, ruler of the city and castle of Zordor to arrive," he replied.

"What castle?" asked Nadielle incredulously.

"Do you believe in magic missy?" he asked.

"There's plenty of it in the southern lands. It often makes it difficult when raiding season opens…"

"Are you a pirate?"

"NO! I am most definitely not a _pirate_! We are sea-faring thieves, I admit, but _not_ pirates!"

"Alright, no offence intended. Would you believe me if I said the city was cursed?"

"Probably not…but pretend I did. What kind of curse are we talking about?"

The guard paused for a while.

"A long time ago, around a hundred years ago, our old king Ramakshi, wanted to join Aviaräb with Zordor. Ramakshi wanted this union in order to wipe out the cities of the north. Ramakshi had learned the art of magic, even though he himself was a mortal! It had shocked us all. The city of Aviaräb, did not agree with Ramakshi's plans and had planned to attack Zordor. Ramakshi placed a spell that hid the city from the rest of the world. We were unable to escape. Soon the prince, Ramakshi's son found the book that would lead to his strong ability and skill in magic. The prince was able to drive Ramakshi out of the city using magic but not before Ramakshi could shout out a curse that made the inhabitants unable to age or die, trapped in their city."

"But that would mean you can not die either," pointed out Nadielle. The guard had a faraway look in his eye.

"It's only a story…"

~ * * * * * ~

Prince Jardan stormed angrily through the hall. Servants bustled around him, making him as comfortable as possible. The head of the guard, Rone, sat patiently next to the prince's throne. The Prince slouched into his throne.

"How has your offer to the princess improved, your highness?" asked the head of the guard.

"Improved? It decreases by the second! The princess of Aviaräb is stubborn and unruly! A selfish woman without any feelings for her ancestors or her people! Were it up to me, I would not have asked for her hand in marriage, but fate calls upon me to free Zordor from its miserable curse."

"Do not lose faith sire, things are changing. The winds are blowing a different way, we will have our stroke of good luck soon enough," reassured Rone.

"Bah! Don't let me ruin a fine day! What goes on in Zordor?" asked the Prince. The head of the guard began reading off notes on a list.

"…three cabbage fights, an argument about food prices, one intruder…"

"An intruder?"

"Yes sir. An Aviaräban girl. She claims to have no knowledge about Aviaräb. We assumed she was an imposter."

"Bring her in," he ordered. Five guards raced into the dungeons. The servants could see something in their Prince's eyes that they hadn't seen in years. Life.


	6. Chapter 6: Jury

A/N: Sorry the chapters are kinda short everyone but when I began this story I had intended it to be a short novel...

"What's your name?" asked Nadielle. In the past few minutes, she and the guard had been having a lively chat about the city in Aviaräb…the place the guards had insisted she'd come from.

"Corter Hilby."

"That's a very Northern name."

"Well, what is your name?"

"Nadielle," she replied.

"Nadielle who?" asked Corter.

"Just Nadielle. We don't exactly have any use for last names in the Leviathan group."

"Interesting."

Suddenly five or more guards burst into the dungeons.

"The Prince has ordered the intruder to the Great Hall, we are to escort her there," said the guard. Another guard opened her cell and pulled her out. Corter stood up to his full height.

"I will take her to the Great Hall," he declared.

~ * * * * * ~

Almost all of Zordor had clambered in the hall to see the newcomer. People lined the walls of the Great Halls. Small children sat in the front row, curious about the girl in the centre of attention. Low murmurs broke out throughout the Hall.

"Silence!" called Rone.

There was a sudden quietness throughout the hall. The Prince saw that the girl shuddered.

"The Zordoran Court will now begin. The subject of this meeting is on the intruder, found in His Royal Highness's private Library."

The girl spoke loudly, "In my defence, he clearly does not use his library anyway!"

Jardan laughed quietly. Everyone turned to look at the prince. It had been a long time since they'd heard him laugh out loud.

"Where do you come from?" he asked her.

"I do not live in a country! I live on the sea with my father Lord Routa and the Leviathans!" she replied. Prince Jardan tilted his head pensively.

"Where were you born then?" he asked her. She thought for a little while.

"I do not know. Lord Routa found me in a small village during one of the Leviathan's raids," she said quietly.

"You are a pirate?"

"I am _not_ a pirate!" she shouted angrily. A long silence entered the hall.

"What book did you read in my library?" he asked her.

"I think it was a storybook. It was about a curse and this city…an evil king…"

All around the hall, the people shuffled uneasily.

"So you were reading about Zordor's history?"

"That _was_ this city's history? The curse is real?"

No-one answered her.

~ * * * * * ~

Elexos was panicking...worse than panicking. He was about to go to tell Almarta what had happened in the past few hours but couldn't find the words to describe what had happened to her, after hearing someone screaming and a bunch of guards taking the scarab.

He had spent the past half hour pacing the length of the ship.

"'Ey boy!" someone shouted, making Elexos jump. He turned to see the aged face of Almarta looking at him with obvious concern. "Are ye alright there boy?" she asked.

"Uh-well-you see...!" he blurted.

Almarta blinked a few times. "Now why don't ye say that again but much slower this time."

Elexos took a deep breath, "Nadielle went to follow a strange cloud but was attacked. Now she is somewhere in the desert arrested by some guards from some city."

"You'd better tell me _everything _Elexos, or so help me, I will make ye scrub this deck 'til it sparkles like the sea!"


End file.
